


Breaking the Silence

by StreetHawk1945



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Abuse, Anal Sex, Angst, Bad BDSM Etiquette, Body Horror, Bucky Barnes Recovering, Canon Divergence - Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Creepy Brock Rumlow, Dubious Consent, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Everyone Needs A Hug, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff, Gaslighting, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Lies, Loki Does What He Wants, M/M, Muteness, Natasha Is a Good Bro, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, Oblivious Thor, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Pre-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Recovery, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, Steve Needs a Hug, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-18
Updated: 2017-05-14
Packaged: 2018-10-20 07:35:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10657890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StreetHawk1945/pseuds/StreetHawk1945
Summary: Nod, shrug, or shake your head.Three simple responses that Steve had in his arsenal to keep unwanted attention at bay.If he was successful, the avengers never needed to know just how unsuccessful his solo mission had actually been.





	1. 1: Coming Home

**Author's Note:**

> Okay guys this is my first fic on this website so my tags might be lacking a bit right now but I'll keep updating them :)
> 
> Be warned, it's not going to start off as a happy story...  
> Tell me what you think and enjoy! :)

The whirr of machines filled the space as the famous Tony Stark focused on adjusting his newest suit of armor. Mark...something or another. Probably mark 50. Around that number anyway (he had lost count by this time). After being forced to eat breakfast, the inventor had finally found solitude in his lab at Avengers tower where he could focus on tinkering with tech whilst sipping on the finest scotch he had in his possession. Well, that was the plan except a certain AI didn’t seem to think it was wise for him to go all day without eating despite the fact Tony wasn’t actually making a conscious effort to enjoy an unhealthy lifestyle. For once.

“Sir-”

“For the last time Jarvis, no I do not want you to order me a pizza. Don’t even think about it else I’ll have to kick your virtual ass to space, got it? I’m quite alright as I am.”

“Firstly,” Jarvis continued. “It is 5pm and you last ate at 8am if you did not notice that the sky was darkening. And, secondly, I wasn’t going to nag you about that actually. Captain Rogers has arrived home following his solo mission.” Oh. Boy did that make Tony feel sheepish. 

“That information still doesn’t warrant you pausing this song..” He grumbled under his breath as he placed down his soldering iron and peeled off his goggles. Listening to AC/DC was just going to have to wait, wasn’t it? “Tell him I’m on my way.”

“Of course, sir.”

 

********

 

Hopping out of the elevator, Tony glanced over the communal area of Avenger’s tower expecting to see the soldier sitting on the sofa catching up on the news or getting himself a cup of coffee but instead found him staring out of the large windows towards the city below. Odd. “How’s my favourite super soldier? Missed you n’ all but it was great not having someone looking over your back 24/7. Don’t worry- I didn’t make anything that’s gonna kill us all. I’d save that for when you’re around to save the world.” At the sound of the billionaire’s voice, a seemingly distracted Steve peeled his gaze away from the streets to smile tiredly at his friend. His skin was paler than normal and his eyes surrounded by dark circles. Something was up. Tony waited for a reply but as the impatient man he was he didn’t wait very long. “Did the mission go alright?” He raised a brow at Steve who was still just smiling at him albeit slightly anxiously now. Tony raised a brow at him and Cap nodded.

“Good to hear. Did you get hurt?” Cap shook his head. “...Think Hydra will be back again to ruin all the fun another day?” Cap shrugged. This really was strange. The engineer had been expecting a full mission debrief along with a proud, pleased Captain America stood before him. Instead he had a nervously-smiling, fidgety man who looked incredibly anxious. You didn’t need to be a red-headed spy to recognize that. 

Wandering over to the taller man, Tony found himself looking him over slowly. Under the scrutiny the soldier twitched and shuffled in his position and it was because of this that Tony decided to move on swiftly. Save any questions for later when the rest of the team was around. Perhaps the Captain was just tired? “The rest of the gang will be back in a few hours so we’ll get some pizza and you can tell us all about your mission then, can’t you?” The smile on Steve’s face faltered but he gave a small nod as he departed from the room, keeping his head slightly lowered the whole way. Tony kept his eyes on the soldier right up until the moment when the elevator doors closed, then he sighed. “Jarvis I take it you took a scan of the Captain?” Rubbing the stubble on his chin, he sunk into the nearest leather sofa to think things over.

“Affirmative, sir. Everything seemed in order however his pulse was elevated a few beats faster than normal.”

“Mmmm…I’m going to ring Natasha.” The engineer stated, swiping the screen of the nearest tablet to bring up his contacts. Moments later, the phone was calling and sure enough he was able to hear the master assassin’s suspicion filled voice. “What do you want Tony? I hope you know I’m busy right now.” BANG! Gun shots: Fire: Screaming. Typical day for Miss Romanov. “I can tell.” Tony rolled his eyes. “But Steve is back.”

“Really? How did his mission go?”

“Well that’s the thing. I don’t actually know.” Getting into the elevator, he pressed the buttons that would take him down to his lab a little distractedly. He was more focused on the conversation he was currently having and the thoughts buzzing in his already very active brain. 

“What do you mean you don’t know??” Natasha sounded indignant and the screams of a dying man followed her voice promptly.

“Steve won’t tell me. Everyone’s favourite patriotic hero, the star-spangled man with a plan, refuses to talk. I mean, I know he’s not the loudest avenger and he’s not as mouthy as Wasp or, god forgive, Deadpool but he normally says more than this. A simple hello would have been nice.” 

Natasha sighed and fell silent for a moment. It was possible something had gone wrong on the mission which would typically result in this kind of response from the Captain however it was a solo mission. That meant the soldier couldn’t be feeling guilty over the loss of men in his team or someone who had got badly injured ‘because of him’. Just one reasonable explanation left...Bucky?

Widow’s body twisted allowing her to deal a high, sharp and powerful kick to her assailant's face. “I’ll be home soon but we'll wait and only if he hasn't said anything by morning will I take action.” With that she hung up and continued on with her mission only with a few more thoughts getting in the way now. Tony rolled his eyes again, putting the tablet on his desk. What next? Oh right, plan. Put away the suit so Thor couldn't get his grubby mitts on it, order the pizza then go to make sure everything is sorted out for when the rest of the avengers arrive from whatever they were doing. According to what Jarvis had told him that morning, Bruce and Thor had been out doing a few errands, Clint was spending a morning and afternoon with his family and Natasha would be on her way back soon. The mission she was on wasn’t all that far away afterall. Tony grunted a little bit at the thought before moving forward to get on with it. 

 

********

 

Steve sighed softly in response to the buzzer that signified dinner was ready. The past couple hours had gone alarmingly quickly as though fate was trying to make it so that he wouldn’t have enough time to formulate a legible plan. His room felt too big and too bright; the artificial light hurting his now seemingly sensitive eyes. That was how he found himself sat in the dark, curtains closed and curled up between the wall and his bed. His muscular body was too big for the available space with his shoulder pressed up against the wall but he barely noticed the discomfort. How was he supposed to do this? To pretend? Heck, he could barely function as a human being anymore let alone put up an act to fool two spies, two geniuses and a Norse God.

“Master Rogers?” Jarvis’ voice came through the speaker by the door, barely concealed worry in his tone. When Steve did not answer, he continued. “Would you like me to call for the other avengers?” The AI could not see the Captain but he could sense the strong heat signature of the super soldier curled up next to the bed. No! That couldn’t happen! Steve scrambled to his feet and shook his head in response to the questions, eyes wide with panic that threatened to consume him. Jarvis remained silent for a few moments, as though contemplating calling them anyway, but he soon relented. “Just shout if you need anything…” It wasn’t his place to meddle. Steve sighed in relief when the AI seemed to leave him alone, slumping against the wall. He was exhausted and despite having only been in the Tower for a few hours, knew he couldn't keep it up much longer. If he could get through this gathering without being detected then he would be fine to go back to his apartment alone and never talk to them again. Of course, it didn’t really work like that. Rather than go back to his home where he could just sit in the dark and never have to think about what happened, he knew he wouldn’t be alone. There was no chance.

It was a good half an hour later when Steve worked up the courage to take the elevator down to the communal floor once more. The pizza was out, the team plus a few guests were all tucking in and watching ‘Love Actually’. Thor was cuddled with Jane, Bruce and Natasha were sat next to one another and Clint had his dog, Lucky, on his lap. The only other person who was alone was Tony and even he had Rhodey and Pepper. The soldier gulped down the urge to make a run for it and slowly made his way to the couch, settling in the far corner away from the rest of them where he wouldn’t be noticed and, for a few minutes, it actually worked.

But Steve was hungry and since that hunger wasn’t being satisfied due to his unwillingness to eat pizza in front of the rest of them, a loud growl of hunger emanated from him causing all eyes to turn to him. He fought the urge to curl up and hide himself from the gazes on him. “You alright Cap?”

“We were going to call you down but we thought you might be sleeping.” The words that had been pushed into his skull for the past few months began to swirl around his mind making tears prick up in his eyes that were hidden by the darkness of the room.  _ They don’t want you around Stevie. They don’t need you there. You know they don’t care about you. You’re just a fossil to them, a waste of space. Boring.  _ Steve nodded his head quickly, keeping his gaze fixed on the screen. The film continued to play but the team fell silent, feeling dismissed by how he replied and not knowing what else to say.

He was glad they didn’t try to talk to him for the rest of the night.


	2. Good boy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya guys :) Hope you're enjoying. Updates will probably be once a week of around this length- doing A-levels so free time is hard to find! 
> 
> More sad Steve in this. Please read the tags for the story! I'm not going to be explicitly telling you whats in each chapter so- yeah :) You've been warned that I'm a terrible person.

It was nearly noon by the time everyone in the Tower was awake and moving about.

The previous night had ended fairly well with the majority of the team falling asleep on the sofas around 2am during the Thor’s film request of ‘Frozen’. It wasn’t that the avengers didn’t like sing-a-long Disney films, it was just that Thor requested that one particular film nearly every week and if they didn’t watch it he broke something in the Tower. Usually the fridge. And a broken fridge meant an angry hulk and that was never a good start to the following day. Only two avengers had been awake when the sun began to rise and outlined the New York skyline in a crimson glow. Tony Stark, and Steve Rogers. Now Tony staying awake late into the night was nothing new; the engineer frequently pulled all-nighters whilst forgetting how to function like a regular human being. But Steve on the other hand. Steve had always been a ‘go to bed at ten and wake up at seven’ kind of guy. It was because of this that Tony had been surprised when, after watching the soldier leave the theater not long after midnight, he found their leader still awake at five am. He had not personally seen Steve wandering around the dark corridors but whilst checking that the security cameras were still working, he had spotted his companion sat up on his bed, his mobile phone against his ear. Not once whilst Tony watched did Steve open his mouth.

Tony had wanted to intrude upon this ‘phone call’ but like a good AI (mother), Jarvis had scolded him and told him that it would be an ‘invasion of the Captain’s personal space’. Tony had been very close to shutting Jarvis down for that particular comment.

Six hours and much deliberation later and Tony had finally moved out of his lab and joined the rest of the team in the communal kitchen on the third floor. Thor and Jane were cosying up by the waffle iron, giggling to each other in a profoundly not Asgardian display of romance. Natasha was talking to Bruce in hushed voices, a look of concern showing clear upon her expression whilst Clint eyed the two of them up from across the room. Pepper and Rhodey had left earlier as they usually did when they stayed overnight, Tony thought bitterly. Strangely, Steve was nowhere to be seen.

“Come on guys I shouldn’t have to see this.” Tony grunted, waving Thor and Jane out of the way as he reached for the coffee pot. Thor blinked, indignant, only to begin smiling within seconds.

“Good morning Stark! How fare you on this fine morning?” Tony rolled his eyes, sipping at his coffee. He liked Thor, truly. It was just far too early for this kind of enthusiasm for life.

“Absolutely fantastic Thor.” He replied dryly. “And you Jane, how are you feeling on this ‘fine morning’?” Jane’s lips stretched into a grin as she patted the huge arm of her boyfriend.

“Oh you know, _tremendous,_ thank you Tony.”

Thor seemed to be completely oblivious to their snickers as he wandered over to the sofa with a stack of waffles covered in syrup and chocolate sprinkles. Before Tony was given the chance to say anything in response to Jane’s comment, the lift was opening and Steve was stepping out. Like yesterday, the soldier still looked exhausted. Messy hair, pale cheeks, and hunched shoulders. Unlike yesterday however, Steve’s eyes were sunken and he didn’t spare a single glance at the group as he instead walked over to the kitchen counters. Silence. Natasha frowned and got to her feet, walking towards Steve carefully in a similar manner as to how one might approach a caged animal.

“You okay, Steve? You’re uh, you’re looking a bit peaky there and you didn’t talk to us much last night.” Didn’t talk to them at all actually, Tony thought but did not say. There was no use saying something that might scare their Captain away. For a brief moment, Steve looked down at Natasha with something akin to terror in his eyes before he quickly smiled and nodded.

Still the silence continued and Steve slowly turned back towards the waffles he was making, the smile gone once more. Natasha twitched as though she was making a move to grab Steve but Tony quickly stopped her, pulling her off to the side.

“Look.” He couldn’t believe he was saying this, worried as he was about Steve, “He clearly does not want to talk about it.”

“Stark-”

“No. You need to listen. We know something is up with him but we can’t force him to talk about what’s happened. I’ll get Jarvis to keep a close watch on him and if he starts getting worse or hasn’t spoken to us by the end of the week, then we can intervene. Alright?” Natasha glared at Tony with those hard eyes of hers, glancing over to where Steve was once more. After a few minutes of watching the soldier carefully and meticulously preparing his his waffles, she nodded slowly.

“Alright Tony. But we’re agreeing that there is something wrong with him because that is not the Steve that took down three helecarriers. You keep an eye on him and report to me if he gets any worse.” With that Natasha cast a final look in Steve’s direction before turning on her heels and disappearing round the corridor towards the weapons cache. Clint gave Tony a nod as he jogged out after her.

Tony sighed, frowning at Steve’s back. It was so obvious that something was wrong with their leader that even from behind Tony could tell. His body language was all off. Rather than standing tall and proud as he cooked at the counter, he seemed to curl in on himself and any movements he made were small and tidy. Steve had never been particularly flamboyant and preferred a more practical approach to life but this was beyond a small difference in behaviour.

Unfortunately however, forcing a confession out of Steve was not an appropriate option at this point in time. They’d just have to wait and see.

“Tony I’m going to the lab. I’ve got some samples of radioactive molecular strands to test out with your new suit. You’ll be down in a couple minutes?”

“Of course Bruce.” Tony heard the ping of the elevators a few moments later that signified that, apart from the lovestruck couple kissing over their waffles on the sofa, they were alone. Tony took the opportunity in a flash.

“You never were the one for waffles, Steve. What’s gotten into you?” Steve shrugged his shoulders, offering a brief smile in response to Tony’s question but nothing more. Tony huffed under his breath. Since the moment they first met, Steve had never responded verbally to Tony’s attempts at flirting with him and whether or not it was because Steve was as straight as a poker or because he didn’t like egotistical insomniacs, they had always failed without, well, fail!

But Tony didn’t always flirt with Steve and many of his conversations were completely innocent for the most part. Frankly it was almost an insult to be completely blanked by his team mate. It didn’t matter what happened on the mission - Steve was still fully capable of speech!

“You uh, you going to share some of those with me?” For the first time since arriving, a pale flush of colour dusted Steve’s cheeks but instead of rolling his eyes and telling Tony to get his own, Steve just shook his head. Tony frowned.

“Well if you’re going to be like that I might as well go watch the news instead...” Tony had been about to turn away when suddenly there was a soft hissing sound. Steve frowned a little, having caught his arm on the hot metal as he placed his waffles on his plate and quickly hiding it. Soon the smell of burnt flesh filled the air.

“Steve what did you do-” The billionaire was quick; too quick for Steve. In his panicked state, Steve didn’t manage to move out of the way in time and Tony grabbed his arm, turning it around to look at the two inch strip of charred flesh. Now it was nothing serious of course. With Steve’s serum, it would have healed within the next five minutes but Tony was more concerned about the lack of reaction to the pain. “Steve come on let me look!” He exclaimed. But Steve wasn’t having it.

Steve snatched his arm backwards and made a beeline for the elevator, stepping in and pressing the button before Tony could even realise what was happening. All he could do was stare at the spot where their Captain had been. _What was going on?_ Tony felt like he was dancing in circles with Steve. Every once in awhile he would manage to take the lead and gather some little bit of information but then Steve would be one step ahead once more leaving Tony bewildered and, quite frankly, worried sick. With a shake of his head he resigned himself to another day of working down in the labs whilst his mind was very much focused elsewhere. This couldn't go on.

********

“Do you require assistance in wrapping up that wound, Captain?” Jarvis’ voice echoed out from the speaker and Steve flinched, shaking his head. As soon as he had gotten out of the elevator, Steve had rushed to his room and locked the door. Waffles forgotten, he focused on carefully cleaning the burn wound, rubbing cream into it, and covering it with a thin layer of bandages. As he had predicted, the serum was not working as well as it should have been. Apparently messing about with it made it less effective and so by the time he had actually gotten to his room, the wound was still just as sore and singed as it had been when he’d actually done it.

Steve frowned down at the bandages. It was a stupid move. _Something you would do._ Of course it would still heal faster than it would on any normal person but that wasn’t the point. The Avengers couldn’t see him with any unhealed wounds else they would ask even more questions about what was going on with him and Steve knew he wouldn't be able to deflect all of them. One of these days they would get fed up of his lies and get angry with him. Maybe kick him off the team. _You know they've been looking for an excuse to do that anyway. They don't need or want you there._  Sighing softly, he picked up the plate of waffles and carefully cut off a tiny bite sized piece with his knife and fork. He placed it into his mouth and worked it down until he was able to swallow it. Steve repeated this again, and again, until he felt compelled to scratch at the bandage.

It hurt to scratch at it, but Steve felt numb to the pain and in fact it almost felt comforting. With every scratch he could feel the damaged flesh beneath shift and burn but he didn’t stop. He didn’t stop scratching as he continued to work his way through his breakfast, and he didn’t stop as his phone went off beside him.

_Bravo: Stop it._

It buzzed again. Steve kept scratching.

_Bravo: Stop scratching it._

Steve stopped scratching and moments later he was greeted with another text.

_Bravo: Good boy._

Steve’s fingers twitched to rub over the course material of the bandages but he kept them focused on gripping his knife and fork in a vice like grip, moving onto his second waffle now.

After another minute, a fourth text came through.

_Bravo: We’re going to draw them out of the Tower tomorrow, okay? You are to stay put and stay quiet like a good boy. When they’ve left we’re going to come in and make some changes, have a little fiddle with their security system but they're not to know that we've been. We'll keep it quiet and not make any mess to their systems. We just need to ensure we don't alert that fucking computer system. II'll link up the whole camera system to ours so I can see you all the time, not just when you're by yourself. I wanna make sure you're being a good boy. You gonna be a good boy for me and let us in?_

Steve read the text and put down his plate, fingers suddenly feeling stiff as he tried to type out a response. The fifth text came through whilst he was still trying to get his hands to corporate. 

_Bravo: Steve you fucking slut you better fucking answer me._

Steve pressed send quickly, desperate to keep scratching at the burn. 

He waited for the response, body stiff and heart pounding in his chest. It felt like he waited for hours, not daring to go back to his breakfast in case he was asked more questions and a response was required. Finally, his phone beeped.

  
_Bravo: Good boy._


	3. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd just like to say a couple things. First of all I'm sorry for any mistakes in this chapter- I'll probably notice them when I read this over again tonight but right now I can't see anything XD  
> Secondly, Age of Ultron has not happened yet and will not happen as the avengers are caught up with what's going on here :)  
> Thirdly, I hope this is okay lol XD I'm normally used to doing short stories so a flowing plot is quite difficult for me. Please leave any feedback for me in the comments, I'd love to hear how I can improve :) Thanks for reading!

A day had passed since Steve had burnt himself whilst making breakfast and they hadn’t physically seen the Captain since. It was driving Tony  _ mad.  _ There was something wrong with Steve; no one could deny it. He had distanced himself from them and was avoiding social contact like the plague. Tony was sure that Steve kept planning his movements around the Tower to make sure that he didn’t come across them. Watching the soldier do the exact same thing that he himself had done when he’d gotten back from Afghanistan was heart-wrenching and Tony felt sick at the thought of what Steve might be going through internally. Why wouldn’t the man just talk to them? Tony reached his limit that afternoon. The rest of the team was enjoying a healthy lunch provided by Clint whilst Steve was nowhere to be seen. 

“That’s fucking it!” Tony suddenly swore. The plate that had been on his lap went crashing to the floor and he stormed across the room towards the elevator. 

“Tony, no!” Bruce frowned, moving with surprising speed and spinning the billionaire around to face him. Tony was seething.

“No! I’m not going to let him just sit up there by himself when there’s clearly something fucking wrong. He’s always looking after us and he never let me just wallow in my own self-pity when I was like that! Why should we let him do the same?”

“Tony-”

“Don’t even try to tell me that he’s okay. He’s been home two days already and he has not said a single fucking word.” Tony cursed and shoved Bruce away from him though he did not move towards the elevator again.

There was silence amongst the avengers. Even Thor was quiet. Tony knew that he had been the one to tell Natasha to give Steve some space just the day before but he couldn’t stand just sitting there and doing nothing. Not when they hadn’t heard a single word out of their leader since he’d arrived back home. 

When no one seemed to have anything else to add to the discussion, the billionaire sighed and sat on the arm of one of the sofas. 

“Jarvis...show the camera feed of Steve’s room on the TV.” Jarvis did not reply to his master’s commands as, clearly, he did not agree with spying on the Captain but he did as he was told and no more than a few seconds later, Steve appeared on the screen. 

Tony had already been spying on the soldier and so wasn’t surprised to see that Steve was lying on the floor in his room, rather than sitting at the desk. He was laid on his stomach, pencil in hand and a large A3 sketchbook that none of them could quite remember him buying spread out in front of him. He was shading something in that the camera couldn’t see due to the angle and he seemed completely focused on what he was doing. Every minute or so he would glance at his phone which lay innocently beside him.

“He’s never been that attached to his phone.” Natasha was the first one to speak. Yes it felt wrong to be watching their friend without permission but times like these called for it. If something was wrong, she would pick it up. “Don’t you remember?” She glanced to Clint who nodded vaguely.

“Yeah,” The archer began, gaze still fixed on the screen. “Used to take him forever to text back and even then he preferred coming to find us if we were in the Tower.”

“So it’s agreed?” Tony looked around at the group. “Something is up with Steve.” Natasha sighed and stood up, walking closer to the screen in order to get a better look. “Yes Tony, something is up. You’re not just going crazy.” She could have commented on how Tony had stopped her from questioning Steve any further but she didn’t want to start a fight. The last thing they needed was for the team to start falling apart too.

For another minute or so, the avengers were silent. Aside from marching to Steve’s room and demanding he speak to them, none of them could think of any acceptable form of solving the problem. They were worried for their Captain. Their Steve. Just as Tony rose to his feet once more, moving as though he were heading towards the elevator, the alarm went off. 

“Sir, there is an armed group of mercenaries and drones along with unidentifiable robots attacking the Empire State building.” 

All gloomy thoughts and wonderings were cast aside at the alert. “Alright you heard the man, suit up-” Tony paused. That was Steve’s line… Natasha stared hard at Tony with narrowed eyes, already attaching her holsters to her thighs. Tony, who had paused, cleared his throat and shook his head. “Even if he was acting normal he wouldn’t be allowed to come anyway. He’s not had his week-long rest following his last mission. So suit up.” He looked to the two ex-SHIELD agents. “Natasha, Clint, protect the civilians on the ground and take out the mercenaries. Thor, you destroy as many robots as you can.” Tony then looked over to Bruce who looked anxious but Tony was quick to put his mind at ease. “I don’t think getting the Hulk out is a wise idea.” Bruce relaxed and nodded. “Come with us, stick close to the battlefield just in case but work on hacking the drones and figuring out who we’re fighting.”

As the team all ran off to get sorted and ready to fight, Tony called for his suit with a bitter taste in his mouth and a heavy heart. He’d spent his entire career wanting to be the one in charge but now it was forced onto him, he wanted Steve back. The avengers weren’t complete without him.

 

********

 

Bringing a cigarette to his lips, Rumlow idly scratched at a long scar which spanned from his left eyebrow over his right cheek and curled under his chin. It was irritating him, but it could have been a lot worst. “Sir, we’ve been granted access into the Tower.”

“Thank fuck for that. Go on then.” He ushered the young man in through the gleaming chrome doors of Stark Tower, following closely behind him. Heavy boots echoing on the marble floor. Stark really had built himself a nice place but it was a shame he only used it to look after superheroes in need. He scoffed at the thought, glancing around and rolling his eyes at a needlessly expensive sculpture of Iron Man which stood in the corner of the entrance lobby. Stark’s narcissism would get him killed one day. 

Brock looked at the two Hydra agents he had brought in with him; one techie with not much experience but an IQ rivalling that of even Stark himself and the other, Jack Rollins. His most trusted fighter. If it had been up to that fucking Sam Wilson, Brock would have been burnt to a crisp or dead but Jack had knocked him out of the way in time and got him out of their before he could get crushed by the helicarrier coming down on them the day SHIELD fell. He’d got lucky. “Alright you two. You know what you’re doing; make it quick but thorough. I don’t want that AI to be able to alert Stark that we’re here.”

The two nodded before turning away from each other to go in opposite directions. The young techie (James, was it?) would be dealing with Jarvis whilst Rollins tripped and infiltrated the security system. Brock grinned to himself at the thought. It was a piece of piss when they had someone on the inside. He typed out a quick message on his phone and cast a final glance around the lobby before stepping into the elevator and heading towards the communal floor. Brock cracked his knuckles and smiled. It had only been a couple days since he’d seen his boy in the flesh but it felt like so much longer than that.

The military gear he had fit himself out with felt stiflingly in the warm air of the Tower and he was only glad that he had thought to leave the mask back at base. It meant risking someone spotting and recognising him but it was worth it. Especially so considering Steve reacted oh so much more pleasantly to his actual face. No more than a few moments later and the elevator pinged, the doors opening to reveal the recreational room and- “ _ Steve.”  _

Steve dropped to his knees at the sound of Brock’s voice, head hung and hands in his lap. Brock grinned and licked his lips. It was a beautiful sight; one he would never tire of. He was sure of it. “You missed your daddy?” Steve gave a nod in response along with a small noise. Running his hand through the fluffy blonde hair of the super soldier, Rumlow practically groaned at the way in which Steve shuddered. Honestly he loved everything about his little super soldier. Brock loved the way Steve’s plump lips trembled when he ran his thumb over them, how his body curved into that trim waist, and those long eyelashes that could’ve have belonged to one of them pornstars Brock often found Jack jerking off to. Not to mention the fucking gorgeous sound Steve made when Brock guided his thick length between those pretty lips. 

“Fuck.” The mercenary grunted as he pushed in the whole way, expression twitching into a smirk at the way in which Steve just sat there and took it. He whined and he squirmed but he would never dare to move away. They didn’t have much time together but Brock couldn’t have stopped himself from freeing his hard cock and taking advantage of the situation even if he’d tried. 

“Your daddy missed you too, Princess.” Brock purred, gripping Steve’s hair tight as he began a punishing rhythm of hard thrusts down his boy’s throat. It spasmed around his cock in protest, but he took no notice. It felt  _ divine.  _ He groaned at the sound of Steve’s cut off chokes and picked up the pace to be greeted with tears in return. He was sure that if he gave Steve the chance he would try his very hardest to please Rumlow on his own but that just wouldn’t cut it. 

Rumlow paused in his movements, pulling back to give Steve a quick break that lasted no more than a few seconds as Brock wasted no time in pressing his heavy booted foot against Steve’s crotch. Brock could see and feel how hard he was. How much he was enjoying being used for his master’s pleasure. He smirked. Usually Brock would refrain from giving his boy any real stimulation but he hadn’t seen him in a few days and was feeling particularly kind and loving. “Rutt off against my foot, slut. I know you want it.” 

Sure enough, as Rumlow resumed his task in fucking the brains out of Steve’s skull, he could feel the desperate movements of the hips below his foot. It couldn’t have been completely pain-free and the muffled whines and cries around his cock told him so. Brock smiled.

“Good boy.” Keeping his foot in place, he focused on chasing his own climax and after just another minute of his brutal pace, he found it. Brock tended to pride himself on good stamina but he hadn’t come for a couple days. That was something he was going to have to change. “Fuck-!” He yelled, digging his fingers into Steve’s skull as he released copious amounts of cum down his boys throat. Naturally, Steve choked on it. 

“Don’t you dare spill a fucking drop. Drink it up like the fucking slut you are.” Rumlow growled, remaining still with his cock deep inside the soldier’s throat until he felt the tight heat convulse around him. He didn’t have time to punish Steve so he had to make sure there was no reason to do so. He held for another thirty seconds until Steve looked like he was about to pass out before pulling away. Jack exited the elevator just as he was zipping up.

“All done sir. We have full control over both the AI and their security systems, including the cameras. James is waiting in the lobby and the Avengers are still distracted by our team but they won’t be for much longer.” Rollins ignored Steve as he spoke. Rumlow nodded absently, his gaze still focused on his boy who had slumped against the back of the sofa, still trying to get his breath back.

“Uh-huh. Perfect. Go back down I’ll meet you in a couple minutes.” Jack flashed him a knowing smirk before disappearing once more. Rumlow gave Steve a kick to rouse him.

“Oi. Wake up sllut.” Instantly Steve scrambled to get back into the kneeling position and aside from the tear-tracks on his cheeks and the way his lips were swollen and red, it was like Brock had never touched him.

“I’m going now. Are you going to continue to be a good boy for me, Stevie?” Steve nodded, though he frowned somewhat. Brock picked up on it and smirked. He knelt down in front of the soldier and lifted his chin so he was forced to face him. “Aww baby, I know you don’t want me to leave. I know the avengers don’t want you around but you’re doing daddy so many favours by being here. If I had more time I’d have made sure you got to cum too but I don’t. Think you can hold on till the next time I come round?”

Steve sniffled but nodded and, for the first time since arriving back at the Tower, he smiled. Brock’s grin only widened as he got to his feet and ruffled the soldier’s hair. “That’s a good boy.” The mercenary made to turn away but paused. Steve looked even more tempting than before and the look in those bright blue eyes filled with pain was too hard to ignore. He glanced at his watch. Yeah he had time. “Go on then. You’ve been such a good boy. I’ll let you get yourself off against my leg like a good dog." 

Steve lit up, the soldier scrambling forward to accept his reward with just a flicker of shame crossing over his expression. Rumlow could only marvel at just how far the great Captain America had fallen. 


	4. The Start

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiya guys, sorry about the long time for this update. I've been rather busy this week! I'm still thinking about where the heck this is going to go but I'm gonna make a plan for the next few chapters and once that's done I should be a bit quicker :) This chapter was written in sections over about a week because I was struggling so I apologize if it's a bit of a mess!  
> Thank you for reading, feedback (of both kinds!) would be really appreciated as I'm not used to writing full stories - Short stories are usually my thing. :)  
> Again check the tags again, more nasty Brock Rumlow etc etc.

It was night by the time the Avengers returned to the Tower. Things had gone badly after one of the bots purposefully went for Bruce and before they knew it the Hulk was out and the city council was on Tony’s ass about damages to property. They had come home in silence, Bruce quietly disappearing to his room where he was quickly followed by Natasha. Sure the Hulk hadn’t gone completely wild but that didn’t matter; the possibility that the Avengers could have been responsible for the destruction of the Empire State building was enough to make the ride home solemn. 

In the end it was just Clint and Tony who returned to the communal lounge and even then neither had plans to stop long. Clint was nursing a nasty gash along his arm which Natasha had been quick to patch up and Tony had plans to spend the night burying himself in his work. They had failed to capture a single mercenary and all of the bots had self destructed, one injuring a young woman who was currently in hospital. Stable, but damaged.  _ Damaged because of me.  _ Tony had thought to himself bitterly. He would have to visit her tomorrow and make sure that she was recovering properly so that he could sleep the night afterwards mostly guilt-free.

He was not surprised to not see Steve in sitting on the sofas or getting something from the kitchen and so the billionaire simply sighed and grabbed a bottle of soda from the fridge before collapsing on the sofa with a grunt. Clint sunk down beside him. 

“Could have gone worse you know.” Clint spoke softly, breaking the comfortable silence that had fallen between the two of them. Tony rubbed his eyes.

“Could have gone better too.” The archer made a noncommittal noise in response, looking back down to his bow which was laid out across his lap.

“It felt wrong not having Steve around. You know? He’s the bloody glue that keeps us together.” Tony scoffed at Clint’s words and shook his head, even if he couldn’t agree more. 

“Nice to see what you think of my leadership skills Barton.” He began, scratching at a scab on his hand which he had from a soldering iron just a few days before. “But, yes. It was wrong not having Cap around but until he starts talking he’s not going to be suitable to go back into the field again.” Clint nodded in agreement and fell silent for a few more minutes before speaking once more. 

“You going to go and talk to him?” Tony paused. Was he?

The billionaire was planning to simply retreat to his labs and hide himself away for the rest of the remaining daylight hours and well into the night until he probably passed out at his desk. Going and trying to talk to Steve would have been completely pointless but maybe that was just the kind of company he was looking for. Someone to sit with who wouldn’t ask meaningless questions or interrupt Tony’s train of thought. Just another human being to spend some time with.

“Maybe.” 

Tony had responded with a wave of his hand, dismissing the subject like it was something that he was thinking about but probably wouldn’t pursue. Only when he entered the elevator twenty minutes later it was not the labs which he asked Jarvis to take him to. “Hey Jarvis, is Steve still up?” 

“Yes sir. The Captain is currently working in his sketchbook.” Tony nodded, tapping his fingers nervously against the side of the elevator. He honestly wasn’t sure what he was worried about. It wasn’t like Steve was going to suddenly bombard him with questions but what he was about to do felt unnatural. He was about to simply sit in someone's company, involved in his own work but still close to them. Chances were that it would be incredibly awkward and Tony would leave not long after arriving.

Without even having to tell the AI to do so, the elevator came to a halt on Steve’s floor and Tony clicked his tongue. Now just to offer his proposal and not become a softy about it either. He walked down the corridor before coming to a stop outside Steve’s room. Tony wasn’t sure if he was just imagining it or not but he was certain that when he listened carefully he could hear the quiet scratching of a pencil on paper. He knocked on the door. 

It was just a minute later when the door creaked open, Steve peering out to see who it was before he slowly opened the door fully. Tony couldn’t place the expression on his friend’s face and felt put off by the immediate silence. He cleared his throat. “Hey Cap, You uh- you want some company? I was just gonna sit in here with you for a bit and do some work or something.” A flash of panic crossed Steve’s face and he chewed his lip, glancing off to the side briefly, before he gave a tight nod. The soldier reluctantly moved back into the room, loitering off to the side whilst Tony stepped in.

Tony released a breath he didn’t know he had been holding as he sat down on the bed and got out his tablet. It took him a minute to realise that Steve still hadn’t sat down. “Are you going to keep drawing?” Tony asked thickly, his mouth suddenly dryer than it had been before. The tension and silence that followed were suffocating but Tony couldn’t miss the anxiety that had taken over Steve’s face. He didn’t seem to know what to do with himself and that was more alarming than the silence. Steve had always been so sure of himself before. 

Steve stepped towards his sketchpad once more, faltered for a moment, before finally settling back down on the floor where he picked up his pencil.

Tony felt like his head was going to explode. As an engineer and an inventor he’d always been curious (unable to keep his nose out of other people’s business) and his mind was filled with burning questions. Why was Steve refusing speak? What had happened on that mission? Where did Steve get that sketchpad from? All questions that Steve would seemingly never answer. And so to avoid forcing that uncomfortable silence between the two of them, Tony remained quiet. The questions could wait until Steve felt relaxed enough to answer them.

Tony rubbed his tired eyes and turned to his tablet, swiping away the holograms of models he no longer needed. His body wanted sleep but honestly, Tony couldn’t think of anything he wanted less. He was sure that Steve was feeling the same way too. The soldier kept yawning and he looked exhausted but still focused on his drawing. Tony couldn’t see what it was.

At first time seemed to crawl by painfully slowly. Tony felt as though he was breathing too loud or perhaps casting too many glances in Steve’s direction. But slowly, the two of them fell into a sort of rhythm. If it could even be called that. The gentle scratching of Steve’s pencil seemed to move in time with Tony’s finger tapping on the screen and for the billionaire the silence became normal. Comforting really.

Too bad he was too focused on his work to notice the worry in Steve’s eyes. 

 

********

 

Steve’s phone began ringing mere minutes after Tony dropped off to sleep a few hours later. Steve, who had been staring at the phone like it was a bomb ready to go off, grabbed for the device the moment it started buzzing. His speed could have been explained by his respect for Tony’s slumber, or it could have been his fear of angering the person on the other line. It soon became apparent which one it was when he answered the call.

“ _ Why the HELL is Tony in your room?? What the fuck were you doing with him!? I specifically fucking told you to be ready at 1am and yet when I get to look at the cameras, you’re already occupied with someone else?? I do not expect you to be able to completely ignore the avengers but letting them into your room? You must be a bigger fucking slut than I first imagined.”  _ Rumlow fell silent for a few seconds following his initial rant as he scowled. He could practically hear Steve’s heart beating in fear. Pathetic. 

“ _ Come on then _ .” He hissed, clenching his fists whilst he watched Steve on the high-quality camera. “ _ Strip for your daddy _ .” Steve made a wet noise of complaint in response and Brock could see him glancing over to where Tony was slumped on the bed. He gave an audible growl and Steve whimpered in response. 

Steve couldn’t stop thinking about what would happen if Tony woke up and saw him as he was. Stripping off his clothing and putting on a show?  __ But he couldn’t disobey his daddy. That was wrong, that was one of the first lessons he’d been taught. The soldier kept his gaze downcast and his body facing towards the camera in order to give Rumlow the best show. Rumlow smirked, leaning back in his chair. It was just too damn easy. Honestly he was sure that if they hadn’t had a much better use for the Winter Soldier, this was what Rumlow would have kept him as. His own personal cock slut who couldn’t say no even if he wanted to. And he didn’t want to. Because all the new Steve wanted was to keep Rumlow happy.

Once completely bare, Steve sank down so that he was sat on his calves, head lowered and the phone held against his ear once more so he could hear the next instruction. Rumlow was already unbuckling his belt. 

“ _ Alright baby boy this is what I’m talking about. Before you do anything real good and sexy for me though - how’s that burn doing? _ ” Steve lowered the phone from his ear and slowly peeled back the bandages revealing a hard lump of scabs where the burn had been. It was healing, but nowhere near as quick as it should have been. “ _ That looks like it hurts baby _ .” There was mock sympathy in Rumlow’s voice but he wasn’t concerned about the amount of pain Steve was in, he was frowning over something else. It was all very well and good keeping Steve’s healing factor under control so that his mind couldn’t begin to repair itself but  the avengers would get incredibly suspicious if they saw that wound. Brock would fix it.

“ _ Don’t worry, when you go back to your old apartment in DC to pick up some stuff I’ll get that fixed for you _ .” He scowled at how sickly sweet his voice sounded but it made Steve blush and squirm real pretty, making a noise under his breath which sounded somewhat like a ‘thank you’. The mercenary could deal with having to act like a loving boyfriend if it kept Steve compliant and subdued. 

_ “Now I want you to fuck yourself with your fingers. Be a good boy and get daddy nice and hard.”  _ Rumlow was already hard from seeing Captain America acting so submissive and looking the way he did but Steve didn’t need to know that. The game was so much more fun when they played it Rumlow’s way. 

He watched as Steve put the phone down and shifted nervously, casting a glance at Tony’s sleeping form before turning around so that he was on his hands and knees with the perfect swell of his ass facing the camera. The angle stopped Rumlow from getting to watch as Steve sucked on three of his fingers to get them wet but he didn’t mind. He would get the real thing again in just a couple days times. 

Steve pushed the first finger in with a soft cry that the camera picked up but the phone didn’t, letting his head hang as he began to fuck himself with it. It was a credit to how well Rumlow had trained him that he knew not to waste too much time and he soon pushed in another finger besides the first, scissoring them and giving Rumlow a good view. Brock himself smirked, stroking his cock in time with each of the movements of his Stevie’s fingers. He was truly beautiful. A work of art really. Brock imagined putting Steve up behind glass in the Metropolitan museum of art.  _ The most beautiful ass in all of America _ the label would read. Rumlow chuckled to himself at the thought.

Steve felt lost when he couldn’t hear his master. He knew that what he was doing followed all the rules and he too was gaining pleasure from it but was his daddy? He whimpered as his fingers automatically rubbed against his spot only to quickly hide his face in the carpet. Waking Tony up would only lead to disaster. 

“Fuck you’re good.” Rumlow muttered to himself, speeding up his own movements as Steve inserted a third finger into his tight little hole which clenched and twitched around the intrusion,  all for Brock’s enjoyment. He made a mental note to thank Stark for the HD quality security cameras later. He licked his lips, remembering the cries that had left Steve’s lips when he’d given him his first reward of eating out his ass. Rumlow wasn’t a faggot, but he had enjoyed the cute little noises that had filled Steve’s cell that night. Just thinking about it made him groan and before he could care to stop himself, he was coming onto his hand. There was no one around to judge him for being an ‘early shooter’ either way. He wiped it off on his jacket, spending the after-tremors thinking about how he would have made sure that load ended up in Steve’s hair had he had proper access to him. The golden locks always looked so beautiful streaked with white. There was no real way to tell Steve that he was done and so Rumlow simply hung up the phone. As he expected, Steve noticed it straight away.

His phone buzzed and suddenly the soldier fell still, the only noise being his own soft pants of arousal. He looked over to his phone and nearly collapsed with relief. The call had ended and a message was left in its wake a couple moments later.

_ Bravo: That was a good show baby. I had to go but you made daddy happy. I don’t want you to come but if you’re good I might treat you later. Make sure you’re at your apartment at 7pm sharpish in two days. I’ll be pissed if you’re late.  _

Worried that Tony would wake up any moment, Steve quietly and carefully extracted his fingers with a wince and padded through into the bathroom, shame clouding his mind and helping him to forget about his arousal. He wouldn’t sleep that night.

 

********

 

Tony grunted as he awoke, glancing at his watch which told him it was approaching seven in the morning.  _ Must have passed out at some point _ , he thought to himself, choosing not to think about how comfortable he must have been in Steve’s presence to finally succumb to an easy sleep. He looked around for Steve and instead found a piece of paper on the side, upon which was a quickly scrawled note;  _ Gone for a run. Thank you for the company last night Tony.  _

Tony felt his lips twitch in a small smile. The note didn’t equate to the answers that he had been desperate for ever since Steve returned but it was something. It was a start. 


End file.
